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Boethius was an eminent public figure under the Gothic emperor Theodoric, and an exceptional Greek scholar. When he became involved in a conspiracy and was imprisoned in Pavia, it was to the Greek philosophers that he turned. "The Consolation" was written in the period leading up to his brutal execution. It is a dialogue of alternating prose and verse between the ailing prisoner and his 'nurse' Philosophy. Her instruction on the nature of fortune and happiness, good and evil, fate and free will, restore his health and bring him to enlightenment. "The Consolation" was extremely popular throughout medieval Europe and his ideas were influential on the thought of Chaucer and Dante. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (25)

A Rare and Varied Consolation
Boethius's "The Consolation of Philosophy" is a rare and unusual philosophical work in that it continues to be read by many people who are not philosophers or students of philosophy. This is witnessed by the thoughtful reader reviews here on Amazon. The work continues to be read, I think, because Boethius placed his philosophy in the context of his own experience. The book has a personal and immediate tone. Boethius also broadened the book to make his own experience speak to many people of his own and later times. Most readers will find at least some of Boethius's philosophical teachings valuable and persuasive. The book also combines philosophy with a beautiful literary style. Poetry alternates with and supplements philosophy.Philosophy is personified and speaks to Boethius in the form of a beautiful woman.The book is full of allusions to classical Greek and Roman literature.

Boethius (480 -- 524 A.D.) wrote this book near the end of life that was both active and scholarly. He had occupied a high position in the Roman Empire before he was imprisoned for treason. He wrote the book in prison in the months before he was brutally tortured and killed. At the beginning of the Consolation, Boethius is morose and grieving over the injustice of his imprisonment and impending fate. He feels that his life has been meaningless.

When she enters, the figure of philosophy largely recalls Boethius to himself. The discussion proceeds in layers, moving from the concrete and specific to the abstract. Philosophy tells Boethius that she must take him and his situation as she finds them and move gradually to help Boethius understand himself. As the book proceeds, it becomes more of a teaching by philosophy than a dialogue between philosophy and Boethius.Prose and argument take the place of poetry as the book becomes heavily Neoplatonic and theistic in tone.

I understood best the earlier parts of this short works, largely books I -- III of the five books in which it is divided. Here, with philosophy's guidance, Boethius meditates on what makes life worthwhile.He comes to understand that what he had primarily valued in life -- things such as pleasure, power, money, success -- are evanescent and pass away. They do not produce true happiness because they are not part of what a person is and can be taken away.They are inherently changeable and fickle. In an important passage in Book II, philosophy says (p.31):

"Why then do you mortal men seek after happiness outside yourselves, when it lies within you? You are led astray by error and ignorance. I will briefly show you what complete happiness hinges upon. If I ask you whether there is anything more precious to you than your own self, you will say no.So if you are in possession of yourself you will possess something you would never wish to lose and something Fortune could never take away.In order to see that happiness can't consist in things governed by chance, look at it this way.If happiness is the highest good of rational nature and anything that can be taken away is not the highest good-since it is surpassed by what can't be taken away -- Fortune by her very mutability can't hope to lead to happiness."

Boethius introduces the figure of the wheel of fortune which, apart from the personification of philosophy, is the most striking figure of the book. He was not the first to use this metaphor, but he made it his own.The figure of the wheel and the emphasis of change and suffering in life reminded me of Buddhist teachings which I have been studying for the past several years. Boethius does not take his philosophy this way but instead develops a Neoplatonic vision of the One or of God which culminates in a beautiful poem at the conclusion of Book III section 9 of the Consolation (pp 66-67).In the remaining portions of the Consolation, Boethius seeks for further understanding of happiness and of the good. Philosophy's answer becomes more difficult and theological.If focuses on the claimed non-existence of evil, the difference between eternity and time, and the nature of Providence.

In rereading the book, I thought Boethius convincingly presented what people today would call an existential or experiential situation -- he was imprisoned far from home and awaiting a gruesome death. He learns some highly particular and valuable ways of understanding that help him -- and the reader -- with his condition. As he develops his understanding, Boethius and philosophy adopt a Neoplatonic synthesis of Plato and Aristotle that contemporary readers are likely to reject or not understand. There is a further difficult question whether Boethius's teachings are exclusively Neoplatonic and pagan, or whether they are Christian as well. (Christianity and Jewish-Christian texts go unmentioned in the Consolation.)

Thus, I think the Consolation continues to be read and revered largely because of the situation it develops in its initial pages and because of Boethius's poetically moving teaching of the nature of change, suffering and loss. It is valuable to have the opportunity to see these things.With change in times and perspective, not all readers will agree with or see the necessity for the Neoplatonic (or Jewish-Christian, given one's reading of the work) underpinnings with which Boethius girds his teaching of change and suffering. As I mentioned, it is tempting to see parallels with Buddhism.But it is more likely that modern readers will try to work out Boethius's insights for themselves in a framework which is primarily secular. I thought that much of the early part of the book, for example, could well have been written by Spinoza. The Consolation remains a living book both because of what it says and also because it allows the reader to take Boethius's insights and capture them while moving in somewhat different directions.

Robin Friedman

Calm before the storm
Boethius as he is waiting to be unjustly gruesomely tortured writes this classic of Western Civilization. This as well as Aristotle, were two of the major guiding works through the Middle Ages translated by King Alfred and Queen Elizabeth as well.

Consolation for Us All
The Consolation of Philosophy is a work of genius.In the Middle Ages, it was the second most widely read book after the Bible.Combining allegory, poetry, and platonic thought, Boethius (475-525 CE), sought to address philosophical questions that still plague us today:issues of God, time, free will, and justice.And he did it all while in prison, awaiting his execution by the Gothic emperor Theodoric, which makes it all the more immediate, urgent, and absorbing.

Boethius illustrates, among other things, that evil people live in their own hells; that vanity and worldly pursuits are empty; that God is good.And Boethian thought is reassuring and familiar; partly due to the fact that many of us are products of the Middle Ages culture that he helped to create, but also because the Greek philosophy that supports his philosophic contentions is also implicitly pervasive.Whatever the reason, reading him feels like being aquainted with, and being consoled by, an old friend.

Philosophy in Action
The Lady Philosophy appeared to Boethius in a vision while Boethius was in prison for political crimes.This book, while highly entertaining, set the stage for medieval philosophy.Among others, St Thomas Aquinas would be in constant conversation with Boethius.

The first section contains a fiery retort by Boethius concerning his imprisonment.

Eventually he and Lady Philosophy get into a discussion concerning true happiness (which St Thomas would essentially copy several centuries later).They define happiness as participating in the highest good, which is God. All other definitions of happiness cannot simultaneously maintain the qualifications for happiness.

The problem of evil:Boethius follows St Augustine in defining evil as a privation of being.Boethius takes it one step further in saying that evil men do not exist!I will let you figure this one out.

Time and eternity:Boethius defines eternity as the simultaneously possessing the fullness of life without end, always appearing in the present.

Conclusion:A masterful and stirring read.Philosophy at its best.A few qualms:I don't think Boethius fully held together is discussion of fate and free will and providence.Good yes and quite original, but...

Anyway, a wonderful read.

Recovering from amnesia
Each time I teach Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy in my Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy course, I'm struck by what a wonderful text it is.There are at least three reasons for this.

First, it's as good an introduction to the worldview of the late antiquity/early medieval periods as one's likely to find.That worldview is likely to strike contemporary ears as foreign--Boethius' conflation, for example, of the good, happiness, and God in Book III--but it's well worth attending to.

Second, reading Boethius is an education in good argumentation.One can disagree with the premises upon which his arguments rest while still admiring and profiting from the rigor of the arguments themselves.Boethius himself tells us that his method is to "unfold" conclusions "without the help of any external aid"--tradition or authority--"but [instead] with one internal proof grafted upon another so that each [draws] its credibility from that which preceded" (p. 82).And he lives up to his word.

Finally, the existential questions Boethius explores in the Consolation are astoundingly vital today.Here's a guy who was once one of the most powerful men in the Roman empire fallen from grace and facing a very messy death.In writing the Consolation, he tries to come to terms with the fickleness of fortune, the problem of evil (why do bad things happen to good people), the secret of happiness, the issue of free will, and the meaning of human existence.Boethius finally concludes that he, like most humans, had been suffering from what might be called philosophical amnesia.He'd allowed his fast-paced lifestyle to induce forgetfulness of who he was and the way he should live his life.In those final months of his life, living in a solitary jail cell and pondering his own mortality, Boethius begins to remember.Reading his wonderful little book can help us, fifteen hundred years later, to awaken from our own amnesias.

Of all the translations of the Consolation I've read, Victor Watts' is my favorite.But be forewarned:his Introduction to the book will tell you almost nothing about the contents and issues of Boethius' book. ... Read more

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This book offers the first English translation of the Quodlibetal Questions of William of Ockham (c. 1285-1347)-reflections on a variety of topics in logic, ontology, natural philosophy, philosophical psychology, moral theory, and theology by one of the preeminent thinkers of the Middle Ages. It is based on the recent critical edition of Ockham`s theological and philosophical works. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Get this book while it is still available!
This book is a monster text! It is 702 pages and covers every imaginable question that could be asked. For example, "Is an angel in a place through his substance?" or "Does a spoken word lose its significance when a thing [it signifies] ceases to exist?" and many, many more (about 170 questions in all).

This is a paperback one-volume edition to the earlier two volume edition, which means this volume is substantially less expensive than the two volume set. Moreover, the topics covered in this volume are practically exhaustive - logic, ontology, natural philosophy, philosophical psychology, ethics, moral theory, theology, metaphysics, etc.

Added features to this already great text include a lengthy and exhaustive subject index, a short but good introduction, nice explanatory footnotes throughout the text, a short but good selective bibliography, and an index of names and works.

Fred Freddoso (Notre Dame) and the late Francis Kelley have translated this work in such a way that both the scholar of Ockham and the student of Ockham will benefit. Moreover, this is a great introductory work to Ockham for students (such as myself) interested in digging a little deeper into the thoughts and writings of one of the more prominent Medieval thinkers.

The work is laid out as such: a question is posed or asked, if there is something to be noted about the question then it is noted with a nice explanation, a reply to the question is given, and sometimes, depending on the question and the content, a reply to the main argument is given. If there are problems or issue which have arisen about a particular question Ockham is careful to cover these problems and issues. And, all along, footnotes are provided by the translators which help the reader understand the Latin usages (if that issue arises), the context of the question and response, cross references to other works or issues which might help the reader branch out into deeper research, and descriptions and explanations of terms, works, etc. So the book is quite helpful and friendly to all readers, which actually makes reading this text quite helpful. I highly recommend this work! Moreover, buy it soon because it has been my experience that books like these (the really good ones!) for some odd reason usually have a short shelf life! ... Read more

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Leo Strauss's Philosophy and Law contains a groundbreaking study of the political philosophy of Maimonides and his Islamic predecessors, and it offers an argument on behalf of that philosophy which is also a profound critique of modern philosophy. Here is an entirely new and complete English translation of Strauss's work, which takes as its ideal the exacting standards of accuracy that Strauss himself emphasized in his own work. It includes a prefatory essay introducing the argument of each of the four sections of Philosophy and Law.

This is a fresh and challenging treatment of the perennial conflict between reason and revelation, or philosophy and religion. Strauss's key contention in this book is that the most influential modern approaches to this conflict have run aground in ways that reflect their loss of key insights developed by the medieval philosophers of Islam and their Jewish pupils, especially Maimonides. Strauss challenges the modern view that scientific enlightenment must ultimately amount to atheism, and that therefore there can be no such thing as enlightened religion. Through a careful, original, and detailed treatment of central works of the medieval Islamic-Jewish tradition, especially Maimonides' Guide of the Perplexed, Strauss aims to recover their key insights into this question. ... Read more

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This is a brief, accessible introduction to the lives and though of two of the most controversial personalities of the Middle Ages. Their names are familiar, but it is their "star quality" argues Mews, that has prevented them from being seen clearly in the context of 12th-century thought--the task he has set himself in this book. ... Read more

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Abelard and Heloise (Great Medieval Thinkers)
Very good book and should be read with the others in the (Great Medieval Thinkers)series to get a complete overview where the foundations of our thelogy system developed from. ... Read more

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Francis Bacon (1561-1626) is one of the most important figures of the early modern era.His plan for scientific reform played a central role in the birth of the new science.The essays in this volume offer a comprehensive survey of his writings on science, including his classifications of sciences, his theory of knowledge and of forms, his speculative philosophy, his idea of cooperative scientific research, and the providential aspects of Baconian science.There are also essays on Bacon's theory of rhetoric and history as well as on his moral and political philosophy and on his legacy. ... Read more

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This book presents several highly philosophical and intellectual discussions. Yet it is written in a very beautiful and readable style. A layman such as myself obtained much knowledge and pleasure from this book.

Refreshingly revisionist vs. "the golden age of Moorish Spain"
Rémi Brague, a French historian, seeks to revise our notions of medieval thought, or what we mistakenly perceive as that era's lack of reason. His essays collected as "The Legend of the Middle Ages," explore philosophical intersections of Islamic, Jewish, and Christian pursuits of truth.

Modern intellectuals look at science differently than their medieval, yes, predecessors did. It's not that they did not study it, but that they studied it with an eye, literally, to seek another reason why to study natural phenomena. Here's a summary of key arguments Brague makes.

The Jewish scholars of the time looked to the world as they did to the heavens. There was not the separation from the Creator that distinguishes for most moderns who enter the laboratory or the observatory today the walling off of God from matter. Modernity itself would not have emerged, the professor opines, without the tremendous push from the medievals who sought in Aristotle the summa of knowledge, next to the Prophet, for the Arabic translators in Spain who transferred Greek wisdom and ancient knowledge into their own language. Once carried over, the Greek could be discarded by the Arab: their sacred tongue then subsumed that of the infidel's vernacular.

Certainly, this differed from those Jews who learned Arabic to rescue, as it were, the Greek storehouse of Aristotelian science, or the Catholics who did the same by learning Hebrew to delve more deeply into the shared scholarship of their own times. Brague goes on to insist that the legacy of Aristotle we inherit comes from Arabic-speaking Jews and Christians who turned the texts into Latin for dissemination across Christian Europe. The Arabs, contrarily, held that once the Greeks had been rendered into the language of the Qur'an, that no more transmission was needed. Perfection had been attained in the tongue of the Prophet.

For the Jews, they bridged the divide opened in Spain by their expulsion fromthe southern part of Iberia by the Almohid dynasty in the twelfth century. The Spanish Jews fled north and brought with them fluency in Arabic and a knack for polyglot survival. The Christians learned what the Jews had learned from the Muslims, who had found what they wanted in Aristotle's Greek.

Brague contrasts the relative openness of Jews and Christians towards their "pagan" inspirations with the rather more smug confidence of those in power and tenure, as it were, over Moorish Spain. The Arabs threw away the Greek corpus, so to speak, once it was safely transformed into the holy Arabic. The context fell away; the core remained intact, if approved for incorporation into what jibed with Islamic understanding.

Greeks gained commentary, line-by-line, when edited by Jews and Christians, contrarily. By keeping a sense of the original source texts along with what the Spanish intellectuals added or remarked upon, they allowed greater interaction between the Greek and Arab contexts and their own application of such complex frameworks to a wider European audience.

I wonder if the commonplace observation of Islamic stagnation intellectually under centralized power and fear of unorthodox opinions that would run counter to the Qur'an can be traced back to such diasporic forces? These foreshadow, in their institutional arrogance and clerical domination, the dispersion of both the Jews and the last Muslims from Spain. That final conquest by Christians ended in 1492 with the great Sephardic scattering-- when some fleeing Jews found themselves back in Salonika, speaking of Greece, at the source again?
... Read more

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Historical writing of the early middle ages tends to be regarded as little more than a possible source of facts, but Rosamond McKitterick establishes that early medieval historians conveyed in their texts a sophisticated set of multiple perceptions of the past. In these essays, McKitterick focuses on the Frankish realms in the eighth and ninth centuries and examines different methods and genres of historical writing in relation to the perceptions of time and chronology. She claims that there is an extraordinary concentration of new text production and older text reproduction in this period that has to be accounted for, and whose influence is still being investigated and established.

McKitterick addresses three themes. She begins by discussing the Chronicon of Eusebius-Jerome as a way of examining the composition and reception of universal history in the ninth and early tenth centuries. She then explores the significance of Rome in Carolingian perceptions of the past and argues that its significance loomed large and was communicated in a great range of texts and material objects. Finally, she examines eighth- and ninth-century perceptions of the local past in the Frankish realm within the wider contexts of Christian and national history. She concludes that in the very rich, complex, and sometimes contradictory early medieval perceptions of a past stretching back to the creation of the world, the Franks in the Carolingian period forged their own special place. ... Read more

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In January 1998 leading scholars from Europe, the United States, and Israel in the fields of medieval encyclopedias (Arabic, Latin and Hebrew) and medieval Jewish philosophy and science gathered together at Bar-Ilan University in Ramat-Gan, Israel, for an international conference on medieval Hebrew encyclopedias of science and philosophy. The primary purpose of the conference was to explore and define the structure, sources, nature, and characteristics of the medieval Hebrew encyclopedias of science and philosophy. This book, the first to devote itself to the medieval Hebrew encyclopedias of science and philosophy, contains revised versions of the papers that were prepared for this conference. This volume also includes an annotated translation of Moritz Steinschneider's groundbreaking discussion of this subject in his Die hebraeischen Ubersetzungen.The Medieval Hebrew Encyclopedias of Science and Philosophy will be of particular interest to students of medieval philosophy and science, Jewish intellectual history, the history of ideas, and pre-modern Western encyclopedias. ... Read more

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Descartes' Meditations is one of the most widely read philosophical texts and has marked the beginning of what we now consider as modern philosophy. It is the first text that most students of philosophy are introduced to and this guidebook will be an indispensable introduction to what is undeniably one of the most important texts in the history of philosophy. Gary Hatfield offers a clear and concise introduction to Descartes' background, a careful reading of the Meditations and a methodological investigation of its main themes. As with all the Guidebooks , this is an exemplary companion to any reading of the Meditations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Superb exigesis of the Meditations
This is the third of these Routledge Guidebooks that I've purchased, and they have all been extremely good. Hatfield has written extensively on Descartes and knows his work inside and out.He also provides the background and context that show what Descartes was up to, and what was at issue in those days that drove his agenda.Long story short, he was out to overthrow Aristotle in the interest of improving empirical science, not to establish some world-denying skepticism.The Meditations are an attempt to first wipe the slate of what we think we know and then, by the end of the 6th Meditation, to have trained the reader in an entirely new way of thinking about the world.The Meditations are a narrative meant to gradually bring you along on that project, which was a tricky and even dangerous one for Descartes, because Aristotle was the Church's intellectual saint.

If you haven't read the Meditations before, or only long ago, I recommend reading Hatfield's treatment of each one first.If you read Descartes first, you are likely to find that Hatfield has added so much to your understanding that you'll be going back for a second read, anyway.I haven't read any other full-length expositions of the Meditations, but I can't imagine how anyone could do a better job than Hatfield has done here.

Good Commentary, Bad Binding
This is an excellent introduction to Descartes' Meditations.Throughout the commentary, Hatfield presents and considers alternative interpretations to reading one of Descartes' seminal works.He also illuminates the background in which the text was written - Descartes' philosophical and scientific influences, as well as considering political circumstances at the time.Regardless, this book only receives 4 stars, but not for any reason on Hatfield's part or the content.The 4 stars is based on, what another reviewer said, the horrible binding of the book.Fortunately, my spine is still intact, but it is surely in poor condition (and I take great care of my books).They definitely could have done better with the binding.

comprehensive intro
This is a first rate introduction, not just to the "Meditations," but to Descartes work as a whole. Hatfield situates Descartes' most famous text in relation to his other works, arguing that the "Meditations" is most profitably read as a work on the foundations of physics. His Descartes is a "mathematician and natural philosopher" before he is a metaphysician or epistemologist. Hatfield offers illuminating discussions of the scientific and philosophical context in which Descartes wrote, stressing his contributions to both physics and metaphysics. We get a good account of the scholastic doctrines against which Descartes reacted. The "Meditations" emerges as a work on the "first principles" of our knowledge of god, the mind, and the natural world. Hatfield thus downplays the epistemolgoical side of Descartes' work, shifting the focus away from skepticism and concerns about the limits of knowledge. He also does a good job explaining how the literary form of the work contributes to its overall aims, clarifying the significance of the "meditative" first-person narrative and the "analytic" method it's designed to exemplify. The book concludes with a helpful, if brief, account of the Cartesian legacy. In general, the book presents a heavily contextualized reading of the "Meditations," one that will surely surprise readers familar only with the standard picture of Descartes and his work. Despite the emphasis on contexts unfamilar to most, readers will find this book very accessible. It's organized well, and Hatfield handles the techinical terminology adroitly, explaining things patiently, while, at the same time, avoiding a burdensome amount of detail. (I have only one complaint: the paper back edition is not put together very well. It's stiff as a board, and the spine cracked as soon as I got going. So I don't expect it to last very long.) ... Read more

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This is one of the first large-scale art-historical studies to look at the concept of representing visions and dreams in the medieval period. The studies range from the Insular world of Saint Patrick in the mid-fifth century to Mediterranean France and Italy in the fifteenth. Paralleling these are essays on modern visions that highlight how our belief in the noncorporal world still exists. Why do visions and dreams exist in the first place, and who determines who gets them? What is the difference between a dream and a vision? Have they been used for ulterior motives? These and many more topics are all dealt with in the sixteen essays in this volume.
The contributors are Alison I. Beach, Hans Belting, Lisa Bitel, Luis R. Corteguera, Richard Emmerson, Georgia Frank, Matt Gainer, Michelle Garceau, Peter Jeffery, Jacqueline Jung, Peter Klein, David Morgan, Eric Palazzo, Glenn Peers, Ann Marie Yasin, and Nino Zchomelidse. ... Read more

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Joel Relihan's translation highlights the poetry of the Consolation while remaining faithful to Boethius' Latin.Amazon.com Review
Unjustly imprisoned and waiting to die, Boethius penned his last and greatest work, Consolation of Philosophy, an imaginary dialogue between himself and Philosophy, personified as a woman. Reminiscent of Dante in places, Boethius's fiction is an ode-to-philosophy-cum-Socratic-dialogue. Joel Relihan's skillful rendering, smoother to the modern ear than previous translations, preserves the book's heart-rending clarity and Boethius's knack for getting it just right. Listen to him on fortune: "We spin in an ever-turning circle, and it is our delight to change the bottom for the top and the top for the bottom. You may climb up if you wish, but on this condition: Don't think it an injustice when the rules of the game require you to go back down."

Consolation of Philosophy recalls the transience of the material world, the eternality of wisdom, and the life of the philosopher. Boethius was deeply influenced by the Platonist tradition, and this piece is one of the more powerful and artful defenses of a detachment that feels almost Buddhist. For anyone who's felt at odds with the world, Consolation is a reminder that the best things in life are eternal. Boethius must be right: the book is just as meaningful today as it was in the sixth century when he wrote it. --Eric de Place ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The One and the Good
Here you find the unequivocal declaration that not riches, not high position, not fame, not physical pleasure are worth pursuing in-and-of themselves. Such things are of value only if they are obtained in the pursuit of the highest Good. This highest Good is demonstrated to be God. Moreover, Boethius points out that when evil men succeed in obtaining such goals over the righteous, then they cease to truly be men- they are beasts and subhuman. This is a refreshing reminder in the modern world, a world not unlike that of late Roman times.

All happyness, all worth, all reason for being, lies in the One and the Good. Even when we commit immoral acts, it is a result of ignorance on our part in seeking this ultimate goal. Indeed, to turn from the quest of finding the One is to cease to exist at any meaningful level. There is no "fire and brimstone", or talk of eternal torment in hell here. There doesn't need to be. As long as you willfully or ignorantly stray from the Path then you are in hell. And to not find reconnection with the One and the Good is to cease to exist. All of our earthly existence is for the purpose of reawakening to our true nature. This truth lies within all of us and it is only reached by personal introspection (Know thyself.) Only in this way will we return to the eternal Source that lies beyond time itself.

The consolation of the Consolatio lies in the fact that suffering serves a purpose if it puts us back on the true Path. Moreover, earthly recognition of virtue is irrelevent. God always recognises the man of virtue if the masses do not.

Relihan's 'Consolation' Should Not Go Unoticed
The Relihan translation emphasizes the philosophical depth of Boethius' Consolation, while faithfully and artfully reproducing the original beauty of his verse and the sublimity of its meaning.With this edition comes a detailed and informative introduction, along with exhaustive notes and a definitive glossary.Joel C. Relihan is one of the leading authorities in Boethian studies; his rendition of the Consolation is one that anyone serious about its study can hardly pass. ... Read more

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Research on medieval philosophy has advanced greatly in the last thirty years, but there has not been a comprehensive encyclopedia summarizing the current research available. This two-volume reference work fills that void.

The Encyclopedia of Medieval Philosophy covers all areas of philosophy in the Middle Ages and part of the Renaissance, ranging from 500 to 1500 CE. It contains general entries on medieval philosophers and medieval philosophies and on the key terms and concepts in the subject area, but it also provides more in-depth details and analyses of particular theories. Furthermore, in order to gain an insight into the social and cultural context of the material, entries are included on the teaching of philosophy, the career of philosophers, and the place of philosophy within the universities.

Complete with cross-references between key words and related essays to enable efficient searches, this Encyclopedia is exhaustive, unprecedented, and user-friendly. It is indispensable for scholars of medieval philosophy and of the history of ideas, and it is also useful for anyone interested in medieval ideas and thought.

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Originally published in English in 1980, Rhetoric as Philosophy has been out of print for some time. The reviews of that English edition attest to the importance of Ernesto Grassi's work.By going back to the Italian humanist tradition and aspects of earlier Greek and Latin thought, Ernesto Grassi develops a conception of rhetoric as the basis of philosophy. Grassi explores the sense in which the first principles of rational thought come from the metaphorical power of the word. He finds the basis for his conception in the last great thinker of the Italian humanist tradition, Giambattista Vico (1668-1744). He concentrates on Vico's understanding of imagination and the sense of human ingenuity contained in metaphor. For Grassi, rhetorical activity is the essence and inner life of thought when connected to the metaphorical power of the word. ... Read more